The Alpine Slide
by CosmicTumbler
Summary: While on a business trip to Kentucky, the Cartwright family takes a day off to do some sightseeing. Adam and Little Joe discover the alpine slide, and Adam reflects on his plans for the future. One-shot. No violence. Alcohol is mentioned, but is not a theme. Characters are not mine (I had nothing to do with making Bonanza), and no copyright infringement is intended.


**The Alpine Slide**

The three brothers and their father looked out over the ledge at the valley before them. Ben, Adam, Hoss, and Little Joe Cartwright had come to Kentucky on business, which they had just recently finished in the nearby town of Cave City. Having traveled so far from their ranch in Nevada and having never been to Kentucky before, they decided to take a day or two to relax and explore the area. In town, they heard about John Croghan's massive cave system from the residents, many of whom recommended it as a must-see sight and popular tourist destination. Directly after finishing their errands, they headed over to the spot, still wearing their work clothes.

The day was cool, and a slight breeze blew across their faces every now and then. The edge of the hill angled sharply downward in a steep slope. In the middle of the slope was a fog-filled gully, where a small river was quickly absorbing the days' heat and turning it to steam. On the other side lay miles of bright green tree-covered hills, each row increasing in height until they reached a point beyond which anything else was out of view.

"What a sight." A smile stretched across Ben's face as he marveled at the view before him. The boys echoed their father's awe with quiet whispers of confirmation.

After a few minutes of taking in the view, Little Joe noticed that hanging above them and stretching out towards an unknown destination beyond the hills was a thick, steel rope. A short distance away from it another steel rope was also hanging. The ropes were held high above them by large towers placed at lengthy intervals between the hills. Metal swings large enough for two people to sit in hung from them. They had metal bars in front of the seats. The swings on the rope closest to them were moving steadily towards them. A short distance away, the swings hanging from the other steel rope were heading away from them into the hills.

"Hey, where do you s'pose those go?" Little Joe asked, pointing at the swings heading up the hill.

"I would guess there's some sort of viewing station higher up." Ben postulated.

"Wanna' go check it out?"

"I think this is high enough for me," his father chuckled. "But you boys go on ahead."

"I think I'll pass too, little brother," Hoss replied, eyeing the flimsy-looking swings warily. Being as big as he was, he highly doubted that the swings would be able to hold him. Plus, the thought of being in one that high up almost made him sick to his stomach.

"I don't know. They don't look very safe," Adam hesitated.

"Come on, it won't be any fun by myself," Little Joe said disappointedly.

"Oh, all right," Adam said. His voice was deep and steady as usual, but a sparkle in his eyes betrayed any attempts he was making at hiding his curiosity.

"Well now, you boys wanting to ride the lift?" A portly man in his mid- fifties wearing a dusty but otherwise new-looking brown suit suddenly appeared at Little Joe's side. "Only a dollar-fifty." He must have been listening to them from somewhere nearby.

"Uh, yeah, the two of us would like to go" Adam motioned towards his younger brother. They each fished the money from their wallets and handed it over to the well-dressed gentleman.

"We'll meet you at the lodge over there when you get back." Ben said, pointing to a large log cabin a short distance away, where several people were sitting outside drinking and conversing energetically.

"Sounds good." Little Joe smiled and turned toward the direction of the metal swings. The portly man led them over and directed them to sit. After Little Joe and Adam had both sat down, the man pulled a steel bar down across their laps. He then walked over to where the lever to start the swings was located a couple of feet away.

"Do they really expect this bar to hold us in?" Adam said skeptically as he looked down at the bar across his lap.

"I'm sure it'll be fine. Just don't rock the swing," Little Joe said, shimmying in his seat a little, shaking the swing.

"Stop that, or I'm getting off."

"Fine. Lighten up will ya'?!" Little Joe laughed.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. It wouldn't take much to knock you down, and there is a bit of a breeze today," the operator said, returning from starting the swings with the lever. His expression was serious, but as they drifted over the edge of the hill, he winked at Adam. "Alright, there you go. You boys have fun."

Adam and Little Joe both leaned back reflexively as they watched the edge of the hill fall away from them. After a few moments had passed and they had gotten used to being in the swing, they both found themselves forgetting about the danger and staring silently out at the view around them.

"It sure feels nice up here."

"Yeah, it does," Adam agreed, looking out over the seemingly endless sea of rolling green hills and pastures.

"The view can't compete with the ranch, but it's not bad," Little Joe smiled, thinking proudly of the home that their father had managed to build.

Adam continued looking silently over the hills. They were greener than most of the land on the ranch, except for the area around Lake Tahoe.

"What's wrong?" Little Joe turned away from the view to look at his brother.

Adam hesitated a moment. "Joe, have you ever thought about leaving the ranch?" He asked, a serious look on his face.

"No, not really," His brother looked slightly confused. "I mean, eventually, when I get married I'll probably want to find my own piece of land, but for now I'm happy." Little Joe searched his brother's face. He found that Adam's usual thoughtful expression had changed. The expression he wore now was one of anguish.

"You mean you've never wondered what it's like off the ranch? How other people live?"

"No, not really. I've never had a problem working things out with people the way I live." He watched his brother intently, not quite understanding what he was thinking.

"It's not that I necessarily have a problem with the way we live or anything, but I feel like there must be more to life than doing the same things every day. Is it really living if nothing ever changes?"

"What needs to change? Pa's worked hard to give us a good home. And Virginia city's not too bad." Little Joe looked at his brother inquisitively.

Adam sighed. "I guess it's not those things that need to change, but me. I'm over thirty years old and I've lived my entire life on the ranch. I don't know how or why other people do the things that they do. What if they've figured out a more efficient way to do something that we don't know about?"

"Like what?"

"Well, for instance, say you're building a house. Here, we lay out the frame a certain way, but in Europe, they do it differently. They use arches. These allow for wider rooms and higher ceilings. But if no one ever traveled there, how would we know that we had that option?" He glanced at Little Joe to make sure his brother was following him. He could tell that Little Joe was listening intently, but he still didn't seem to quite understand what he was getting at. Adam closed his eyes and paused a moment to think and make sure he chose the right words. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, I respect all of the hard work that Pa's done to build a home for us, but I want to be able to decide things for myself. I can't rely on Pa forever. I've got to learn to decide for myself what is and isn't the right way to live."

Little Joe took a few moments to think over his brothers' words. "I guess you're right that Pa won't be around forever," Little Joe replied sadly. Although he seemed healthy, their father was getting on in age. "He'll be sad to see you go, though. We all will." Although he couldn't understand Adam's need to leave the ranch, he could understand his need for independence. Being the youngest son, he was always having to rely on his father and his brothers to show him how to do things.

They were approaching the end of the rope. Another large hill with a flattened top came slowly into view. On the hill, another swing operator was waiting for them at the hill's edge. The boys were silent the rest of the way, enjoying the rest of the view before they returned to land. When they reached the edge of the hill, they found that several people were milling about behind the chairlift operator. Most of them appeared to be waiting in a line. As the operator lifted the bar, Little Joe looked over the man's shoulder and asked what the line was for.

"That there's the alpine slide. The track goes for a quarter mile down the hill. Only one in the state," he stated proudly.

The brothers looked at one another. They had never heard of an alpine slide. Adam was certain there was no such thing in Nevada. Little Joe's eyes suddenly took on a certain sheen.

"No," He said firmly and gave his brother the eye.

"Come on, you wanted to see new things, didn't you?!"

"No…oh come on, Joe!" Before he even had time to argue, Little Joe was already sprinting to the other side of the hill. Adam sighed and followed him. When he got to the edge where his brother was standing, he found him still looking down at the concrete tracks. Their paths ran through several patches of trees, curving around the landscape and going so far down the hill that the boys could just barely see their ending points. Little Joe let out a whistle. Beside him, two other men about their age were lowering themselves onto wooden sleds with wheels. Two women stood over them wearing anxious looks on their faces. "Don't do it, Jeff!" Jeff's girlfriend gave him a desperate look. She was a thin blonde woman with a pale complexion. Jeff smiled up at her, his hazel eyes gleaming playfully.

"It'll be alright, Minnie. If I topple over, I'll just brush off the rocks and flip my cart back over, right Bill?"

His partner laughed. "Yeah, sure, that's right. If you didn't hit your head on a rock." Minnie scowled at Bill. Bill's girlfriend, who was apparently less uptight than Minnie, laughed along. "Oh Minnie, I'm sure they'll be fine." Her brown eyes held the same sparkle the men's had.

"Time to go!" The slide attendant shouted, looking down at his pocket watch. The boys quickly looked down and readied themselves to push off. They gave each other one final, excited glance, and then they were off. Little Joe and Adam watched as the two sped down the hill. Both drivers had their hands off the lever and were pushing each other to go faster. When they hit the first curve, Bill pulled back slightly on the lever, giving his opponent the lead while taking the curve at a safer pace. Jeff pulled his cart's lever at just the right time, taking the curve safely but at a slightly faster pace and continuing down the hill. Overtaken with excitement, Minnie seemed to forget her anxieties. She let out an encouraging yell. Bill's girlfriend responded with a similar call of encouragement.

"Looks fun." Little Joe said quietly. He wasn't speaking to anyone in particular—simply enjoying the moment. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed two women about their age coming to look out over the edge of the hill. "You ladies wanna' cheer for us?" His usually cheerful expression darkened a little. "We came up this hill all alone and have no one to cheer us on, do we brother?" He glanced at Adam with puppy dog eyes.

"Now wait a minute…" He hadn't even had a chance to tell his brother that he was still not planning on riding the carts.

"Sure, we'll cheer for you." The woman smiled broadly. Like most girls, she and her friend were unable to turn him down. His devilish good looks and playful disposition had won him the affection of many women over the years. None yet had won his heart completely, however.

"Thank you, ladies!" Little Joe's expression immediately brightened and he beamed. Beneath his curly brown locks, his hazel eyes now glittered with excitement.

"Come on Adam, now that the ladies are going to cheer us on, we've got to give them a show!"

"Well, if the ladies insist," Adam replied, hiding his reluctance. He hated to think what would happen if one of them happened to take one of those turns too fast. But it did look kind of fun. And it was certainly a type of entertainment he'd never experienced before…

They made small talk with the women as they waited in line, learning that the two had come up from Arizona for a friend's wedding, which was in a couple of days. The women were both single and attractive. Adam thought that if he were to marry, he would like a woman who didn't mind a little adventure. His mind once again began to fill with ideas of travel. Hopefully, he would live long enough to do so.

Finally, it was their turn. After half-listening to the attendant's safety speech, the boys steeled themselves for the ride.

"Well ladies, looks like we're off." Little Joe smiled broadly.

"First one to the bottom buys the other a beer?" Adam posited.

"Alright, you're on!"

"On the count of three…one…two…three!" Adam finished the count and pushed off down the track. Little Joe followed suit.

The concrete track was rough despite being mostly free of rocks, and the ride was slightly bumpy. As his cart bumped lightly up and down, Adam looked ahead at the track before him, anxiously scanning for rocks. He could already tell that he was going to be sore when he reached the bottom. He took a moment to confirm his brother's location. Little Joe currently held the lead. Adam gritted his teeth. Since he had practically been forced into this, he wasn't going to lose. He watched his brother take the first curve, and then pushed down on the lever.

His cart continuing to gain speed, Little Joe felt the increasing force of the wind in his face. It was stronger than if he had been riding a horse, but not so strong that he had to close his eyes. The faster he went, the freer he felt. He let out a whoop of excitement. Out of the corners of his eyes, he could see trees whizzing past him in a green blur. They were quickly approaching the first turn. He could hear the cheers of the women coming from way up the hill, and knew that his brother was only a short distance behind him. He pulled back on the lever and leaned in the direction of the cart. He took the first curve without issue, maintaining his lead. He looked back at his brother, showing him a satisfied grin.

After they had made it through the first turn, the boys began to see-saw places. In a moment, Adam had just barely caught up to him. Little Joe increased his speed, overtaking him. Then Adam increased his speed and passed him back. Little Joe pushed the lever further down, trying to regain his lead. This went on for several hundred yards. Just as Little Joe finally managed to take back his lead and increase the distance between them, another curve came into view. Caught up in the excitement of the moment, he almost forgot to pull the lever up in time.

"Hey Joe, pull up!" Adam called out in alarm. The cry brought Little Joe out of his reverie. Realizing his error, he quickly pulled up on the cart's lever. Even though he managed to pull up on the lever up quick enough, a small rock had somehow rolled onto the track. As the cart ran over it, it jarred and jumped violently and the front wheels lifted slightly off the track. The cart then began to bounce up and down. Panicked, he pulled up harder on the lever and tried to center himself so that the cart wouldn't turn over.

Adam looked on in horror as his brother's cart jumped and swayed dramatically around the turn. He watched as Little Joe continued to desperately pull up on the lever. This just barely seemed to slow the cart down. His brother went high up on the concrete track, just nearly tipping over the edge but sliding back down to the center at the last moment. His warning must have been just in time. Adam's cart passed his brother's and he craned his neck back to watch.

The bump in the road had slowed Little Joe's progress down the track, but he was still moving too fast. He continued to bump along for a while. Gritting his teeth, his knuckles white from gripping the lever so hard, he watched the track carefully until the ride smoothed and his cart once again glided over the track without bumping and scraping. Finally, he relaxed. A smile crept up his face. It had been a wild ride, but he made it through. He let out a victory cry.

Hearing the cry, Adam breathed in deeply and let out a sigh of relief. Pretty soon, his brother was in view again, the cart lever pushed down and a determined look on his face. He ended up passing Adam at the last second. As their carts came to a stop at the end of their respective slides, they noticed that a crowd had gathered at the end of the hill. The onlookers were buzzing with excitement.

"Glad you could make it," Little Joe said as his brother's cart came to a stop a few seconds after his. He seemed completely unfazed by his previous encounter with death. He chuckled.

"Right back at ya'. I thought you were dead back there," Adam laughed.

"Who, me? Nah, that was nothin'." Little Joe beamed as he stood up from the cart and looked around him, seemingly grateful to be alive. His legs and back were sore from bumping over the concrete. "I can definitely use that beer."

"So could I." Adam sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day. He felt like _he_ had been the one who had earned the beer from his brother. That ride had almost taken a year off his life. Resting a minute before he got up, his mind started to wander. The experience made him wonder what things would be like at the ranch without him. When he left, who else would be there to watch Little Joe and make sure he didn't run off course? Hoss would probably end up taking over many of his errands, and Pa would be too busy to keep up with his brothers' shenanigans. Maybe he shouldn't leave home just yet. Besides, there certainly wasn't any lack of excitement whenever his little brother was around. With a grunt, Adam lifted himself from the wooden cart.

As they walked through the crowd, they received pats on the shoulder and ovation from various strangers. The ladies who had cheered for them at the top of the hill were nowhere to be seen, however. Perhaps they had been asked by another group of guys to cheer for them. Or maybe they were riding the chairlift down. They could be riding the slide, though they were wearing dresses so he doubted that. But it didn't matter. He was just happy to be alive and to have had the experience. The boys smiled and thanked the spectators for their congratulation as they passed.

About a mile-and-a-half away up a hilly staircase, their father and brother were waiting for them at the log cabin. When they finally made it to the cabin, exhausted from sitting on the carts and climbing several long flights of stairs up the side of the hill, they looked for their father and brother. They were quickly able to locate them, thanks to Hoss' beige and distinctively tall hat.

"Welcome back. We were beginning to wonder what happened to you," Ben said, looking more relieved than perturbed. He was used to them running off for longer periods of time than he had expected.

"Yeah, what took so long?" Hoss looked at them with curiosity.

"I'll go get the beers," Adam said, disappearing through the crowd and leaving the storytelling to his younger brother. He'd had enough excitement for one day. A mischievous gleam in his eyes, Little Joe began to relay their adventure…


End file.
